Tannishtha should’ve watched the show before coming in: Krushna Abhishek

Speaking to Hindustan Times on Wednesday evening, Krushna claimed he was surprised by Tannishtha’s reaction since she appeared calm and composed during the episode’s ‘roast’ and never raised any objection.
(COLORS)

If you thought actor Tannishtha Chatterjee’s outburst against Comedy Nights Bachao for making unsavoury comments against her skin tone and the TV channel, COLORS’ subsequent apology wouldn’t snowball into a bigger controversy, here’s something to prove you wrong. Now, the show’s host, Krushna Abhishek, has reacted to the controversy, putting the ball straight back into Tannishtha’s court.

Speaking to Hindustan Times on Wednesday evening, Krushna claimed he was surprised by Tannishtha’s reaction since she appeared calm and composed during the episode’s ‘roast’ and never raised any objection.

Tannishtha, who was on the sets of the show on Tuesday to promote her new movie Parched, wrote a long post on Facebook on Wednesday, accusing the show to be ‘regressive and blatantly racist’ in the way her dark skin tone was made fun of.

The channel has already apologised to her, but Krushna maintains she should’ve watched the show a little to know the format before agreeing to take part in it. “I was the first person she met on the sets. She was very respectful and sweet. She told me that she had never watched either my show or AIB’s Roast. When the show started, I could see that she was getting uncomfortable and not enjoying herself at all. I told this to the director. She left after 2-3 segments with the rest of the cast of the movie (Radhika Apte and director Leena Yadav),” he said.

In a Facebook post on Wednesday, Tannishtha wrote about the experience of being a guest on the show that presents comedians ‘roasting’ their guests.
(Alok Soni/HT Photo)

Krushna claims that Tannishtha did not verbally object to the content or the tone of the show while she was still on the sets and that is why he could not believe that she got so flustered and hurt by it. “She was just not prepared for it. Everyone met me during the show. Leena even knew the format of the show and she was enjoying herself. Tannishtha has never seen Hindi television so what would she expect? She was expecting caesar salad or a burger... an American comedy show but we served her the desi vada pav, full of masala. That’s how Krushna and Bharti roast people,” he said.

When asked if he thinks it is OK to mock people on their complexion or any physical attributes, Krushna says it all depends on the way one says it. “We say all sorts of things to Bharti too. We call her moti, bhains and what not. Ek dhang hota hai bolne ka. Tannishtha was just not ready for it. I don’t have any bad blood with her. I respect women and I also apologise to her if she felt hurt. It is never our intention to cause hurt to anyone.”

The incident has sparked a debate on India’s obsession with fair skin. Watch this space for more.